Any potential buyer that keeps on trying to push you for an answer is a definite no-go. A quality buyer will be someone who takes time to explain all the ins and outs and let you make your own decision on the structured settlement sale.

Lastly, be wary of buyers who quote you one price, but then make a lower offer when it comes to actually signing the contract – do not sign if this happens to you, the initial quote should be exactly what you end up with.

Considering offers

No doubt the first thing that you will look at when trying to find a structured settlement buyer is the amount of money that is offered for your annuity. Of course, money is a big consideration, but it shouldn’t be the only one.

Beware of any offer that seems too good to be true, because it probably is just that.
One of the favorite tricks of scammers is to offer an impossibly big lump sum at first, but then keep delaying the sale once they have your agreement.

They will try to keep you waiting for a few weeks in the hope that you become desperate for the money, and then finally turn around and offer you a much lower amount than the original quote in order to “rush” the process through.

The same goes for offers that seem too low – simply avoid anyone who is unwilling to pay close to the real worth of your annuity.

Make sure you obtain a number of different quotes, at least five or six, so you can compare and judge which ones are realistic offers.

Time considerations

One last thing to take note of when you obtain a quote from a structured settlement company is how long they estimate it will take to complete the transaction.

This can tell you a lot about a structured settlement buyer, as realistically you are looking at a minimum of four weeks before the deal can go through.

Be very wary of anyone who tells you they can complete the transaction in a few days or even just a couple of weeks.

It’s illegal to sell structured settlements without court approval, and this nearly always takes a month or more to obtain.